Seattle Kraken coach Lane Lambert issued a surprising guarantee in the home dressing room Wednesday, moments after a last-minute victory over Toronto. “Going to Calgary and we’ll beat them, too.”
The Kraken had already dominated the Flames twice by identical 6-1 scores, and the team had just completed a 3-1-0 homestand. So the coach’s bravado didn’t seem misplaced.
But the vastly improved Flames, who’ve now won six of their last eight, had other ideas. Aided by Seattle’s toothless penalty kill and big nights from Matt Coronato (four points) and Joel Farabee (three points), the Kraken were humbled 6-2 Friday in their final regular season game at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
Seattle’s PK remains a mess. The Flames scored on each of their two man advantages. Martin Frost 2:32 after puck drop and Matvei Gridin in the 2nd period were the seventh and eighth goals allowed by the Kraken in their last 14 times shorthanded.
Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer was pulled in favor of Joey Daccord after Farabee scored Calgary’s 4th goal (on 14 shots) at 10:40 of the 2nd period.
Freddy Gaudreau’s 1st period tally, in Seattle game 14, equaled the goal total (seven) it took him 68 games to reach last year. Mackie Samoskevich scored his 6th on a late 2nd period Kraken power play.
Mackie Samoskevich power goal goal
1st Period Goals
1-0 Calgary: Frost beats Grubauer on a power-play rush. It’s the Flames’ only shot in the first eight minutes.
1-1 Tie: Gaudreau puts home his own rebound from in close. Since the Frost goal, the Kraken have tilted the ice.
2nd Period Goals
No goal: Referee Corey Syvret blows his whistle when Grubauer appears to squeeze the puck, although it actually leaked through and over the goal line.
2-1 Calgary: Aydar Suniev gets one that counts, all by his lonesome at the bottom of the right circle. Three Kraken defenders were unable to prevent Frost’s cross-ice pass.
3-1 Calgary: The Flames’ potent power play was operating at 29% coming in, 5th best in the NHL. Matvei Gridin becomes the latest to victimize Seattle’s PK.
4-1 Calgary: After assisting on two Flames goals, Farabee gets one of his own and ends Grubauer’s night.
4-2 Calgary: Seattle’s power play isn’t too shabby either, 12th ranked at 22.7%. Kaapo Kakko weaves through traffic, sending a pass to the left dot for a Samoskevich one-timer.
3rd Period Goals
5-2 Calgary: A Samoskevich neutral zone turnover and a mistimed attempted change by Ryker Evans leave plenty of room for Coronato to blast one past Daccord.
6-2 Calgary: Since the winning team in every Kraken-Flames game must score six times, Ryan Strome obliges.
Kraken Notables
How many times in NHL history has a 6-foot-9 guy fought a 6-foot-8 guy? It happened two minutes in, when Seattle’s Curtis Douglas squared off with Calgary’s Adam Klapka. The extra minor to Douglas led to the Flames’ first goal.
By The Numbers
Goals by period: Calgary 1-3-2 (6); Seattle 1-1-0 (2)
Shots by period: Calgary 5-13-9 (27); Seattle 10-9-4 (23)
Power Plays: Calgary 2-2; Seattle 1-4
Next up: Two scheduling quirks. (1) Seattle (8-5-1) doesn’t play again until next Wednesday. (2) Their opponent at Climate Pledge Arena will be – who else? – the Calgary Flames, somehow completing the season series on Nov. 4.
Earlier Kraken:
— For Kraken, McCann Injury A Big Blow
Earlier Canucks:
— The Canucks Are On Their Own Sad, Little Planet
VIDEO RECAP: “Kraken Reaction!” — Simmer and Glenn with the deets …
